Luca Loses a Match
Luca’s team lost, and Luca feels like stomping. But there’s a surprise at the end.
Luca wanted to win more than anything. He practised every day. He even slept with the football beside his pillow. Today the Midnight Owls were playing the Purple Stars.
The game was tough. Luca ran and ran, and Ella did too. But the Purple Stars were just a little bit better. When the whistle blew, the score was 1-0. The Midnight Owls had lost.
Luca’s face went hot and red. He threw down his gloves and stomped across the grass. ‘It’s not FAIR!’ he said. Stomp, stomp, stomp.
Then he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Lily from the Purple Stars. Lily held out a hand. ‘Good game,’ she said. ‘You ran so fast. I could hardly keep up.’
Luca looked at the hand. His cross feeling started to fizzle like a bubble. He took a breath and shook it. ‘Good game,’ Luca said quietly. ‘You played really well.’
Afterwards, both teams sat together on the grass eating a crunchy biscuit. Ella told a silly joke about a football that wanted to be a pumpkin. Everyone laughed.
That night, Luca was still a bit sad. But he also felt proud. He had done his best and been kind. And tomorrow, he would get a new chance to play.
The little lesson
Losing is part of playing, and kind words make any game a good one.
Let’s talk about it
- How do you feel when you lose a game?
- What kind thing could you say to someone who won?
Finish stories to collect Luca as a sticker in your Sticker Book.
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